A bumper midweek lineup saw Ronaldo cut loose at last – bringing smug smiles to some fantasy managers and causing mild panic amongst the rest. Elsewhere, Lampard and Adebayor scored heavily again and the big clean sheet fetchers did their thing. A good night all round for most then. Here’s the notes…
The Lineups
It’s almost impossible not to start at the Emirates, so let’s do just that. Wenger brought Adebayor back into his starting lineup as expected. Denilson also earned a recall with Song benched and Sagna returned to right back with Eboue benched. There was no Toure though – he remained on the bench with Silvestre keeping his place alongside Gallas in an all-French back line.
Old habits die hard for Rafa, as he shuffled and tinkered with his lineup. There were four changes in all, with Hyypia, Pennant, Lucas and Babel coming in for Agger, Mascherano, Riera and Keane. The rotation of Agger is the most alarming here. He was shaping up as a key purchase with Liverpool’s fixtures looking strong but clearly, there is a slight doubt over his starting role with Hyypia in reserve. Looking at Liverpool’s programme however, he looks assured of starts in the next two to three Premiership games, with Hyypia likely to see action in the Carling Cup a fortnight from tonight. It’s mildly interesting that Alonso kept his place over Mascherano for this one – with his form and Liverpool’s strong run of fixtures, he could be a consideration as a mid-price purchase.
Adams also made an interesting decision with his lineup. While Redknapp was reluctant to go with 4-5-1 and drop Defoe away from home, Adams immediately took the plunge and dropped Defoe to the bench tonight. That will be a major concern for his owners. Defoe will be fine for Fratton Park encounters but clearly, there’s a risk of him being benched for difficult away games. Pompey’s forthcoming fixtures are strong enough for this not to be a worry in the short term; it needs to be noted for future reference though.
Campbell missed this one with a hamstring injury, so Kaboul kept his place. Kranjcar was kept on the bench with Traore keeping his left midfield role and earning a clean sheet in the process. For the second match running, he was subbed before Pompey conceded. The fact that he was replaced by Kranjcar could indicate that Adams may employ the Croatian on the left. A speculative concern but one worth monitoring. I’d wager that Traore will end up at left back if that was the case.
Carew started on the bench again for Villa but emerged for the second half to help Villa earn the victory. Villa were unchanged then, with Cuellar now firmly established ahead of Davies in central defence. Blackburn were without Santa Cruz. He picked up a injury in the warm-up which handed a start to McCarthy.
The right back situation for United remains a mystery, with Ferguson restoring Rafael in place of Brown tonight. Neville was kept on the bench, so like Brown, he remains a no-go zone for fantasy managers. Elsewhere Tevez replaced Rooney as suspected and that left Berbatov and Ronaldo in the lineup to do the damage. It looks as though that pair are untouchable then, with Rooney seemingly the one more likely to make way for Tevez, despite his recent goalscoring form.
Ferguson’s other significant change saw Van der sar rested with Kuszczak earning a start. That wil be a concern for his owners – with Reina and Cech bringing in clean sheets tonight, it highlights the damage that an occasional rest can do. This could be a regular event when the Champions League schedule hots up later in the season.
Hughes decided to shake-up his defence for the trip to Boro and that saw fantasy favourite Garrido dropped to the bench and Onuoha brought in. As it turned out Richards was deployed at left back with Ben Haim partnering Dunne in the centre. I can’t see this being a permanent move from Hughes, although Garrido is clearly far from assured of his place.
Moyes decided to keep Cahill benched at Bolton as he kept faith with a 4-4-2 with Saha and Yakubu up front. Megson made just one change – Riga replacing the suspended McCann.
Joe Cole returned for Chelsea, which saw Kalou dropped to the bench. Scolari kept things intact elsewhere. Hull were unchanged as Dawson recovered from injury to start at left back.
The Form
Starting at the back there was further clean sheets for Liverpool and Chelsea – their sixth in ten games. United clocked up their fifth in nine games as the high priced fantasy defenders begin to earn their corn for their owners.
As I’ve stressed before, of those top defences, it’s Liverpool that look to have the best run of games coming up. After the trip to White Hart Lane at the weekend, it’s four home games in six for Rafa’s men which should bring more rewards for owners of Reina, Carragher and the rest. United’s fixtures, in contrast, look tricky going forward. After Hull at home this weekend, they are on the road at Arsenal, Villa and City over the four games that follow.
A gap is beginning to emerge, as those three teams begin to pull away when it comes to defensive points. Below the big three, Villa and Arsenal showed their inconsistency by conceding carelessly at home once more, while City were found wanting again on the road at Boro.
Fulham chipped in with another home clean sheet – they’ve conceded just three goals at the Cottage all season and appear to offer the strongest alternative to Hull’s bunch of popular defenders – Turner, Dawson and Zayette. Konchesky will get suitors after last night – he chipped in with the assist for Johnson’s opener and earned FPL bonus.
Everton came back from a predictably tight affair at the Reebok with their first clean sheet of the season. They have the fixtures to kick on and defensive rewards could come their way. Lescott still looks overpriced though, even in the FPL where his price has fallen – there could be some value in Howard and Jagielka however.
Blackburn’s Emerton is also worth watching when Rovers have good fixtures and form. Both he and Warnock are still occupying midfield roles and both got on the scoresheet last night. Boro kept a rare clean sheet at home to City and rather bizarrely, Turnbull has emerged as a decent FPL target in goal as an alternative to Myhill and Schwarzer who have both had price rises of late.
At the other end of the scale, Wigan conceded two more goals tonight, slipping to their fourth straight defeat. Figueroa has been a major fantasy purchase this season but Bruce’s side are shipping goals at an alarming rate, making him a liability rather than a bargain at the moment. He was subbed early in the second half last night – a sign that Bruce could be losing patience perhaps?
Moving into midfield and at last Ronaldo well and truly flexed his fantasy muscles with a brace and maximum FPL bonus. This will doubtless cause panic amongst those who resisted the major surgery required to get him in their squad. He’s far from his best but that only compounds his potential – he’s now scored 4 goals and 2 assists in the 5 starts since his return from injury. When you look at points-per-game, he is the top player in the FPL. He’ll continue to have the odd blank week but last night made it a lot harder to justify dismissing him.
Lampard’s imperious goal and further FPL bonus won’t make it easy for those without Ronaldo. In my mind, there is no way you can discard the Chelsea man, even for Roanldo’s potential points tally. Chelsea’s Malouda also notched again in the win over Hull, continuing his rich vein of form. Scolari appears to be getting the most out of him and he’s emerging as a decent alternative for those beginning to get impatient with Wright-Phillips.
The City man looked essential on his return to the club but in recent weeks, his attacking thunder has been stolen by Robinho and his role in the City lineup has shifted to one of a traditional winger, rather than part of a fluid front three. City away from home are a different proposition to the side we see at Eastlands. Even so, City face some tricky encounters at home with Spurs, Arsenal and United the next to visit. After five consecutive blanks, it looks likely that Wright-Phillips will be shown the door by many fantasy managers this week.
Bentley’s outstanding goal for Spurs will surely contribute to that. He is beginning to show the potential output we anticipated in pre-season. For me, Tottenham’s forthcoming fixtures are just that little bit too tricky to take the plunge just yet but clearly, Bentley is at last someone we can consider as a decent option.
At the budget end, Delap continues to provide steady points from his touchline missiles. He earned his fourth assist last night. Everton’s Pienaar also came away with an assist to reward his lively return to the side. Both look worthy investments for those having to crowbar bar you know who.
Let’s move up front and take a look at some of the strikers that caught the eye. Berbatov’s sublime piece of skill for Ronaldo’s second goal will inevitably win him more fantasy admirers. That was his fourth assist of the season. With Rooney benched last night, he appears to offer the better long term potential if you’re considering and can afford a United striker alongside Ronaldo in your squad.
Adebayor missed a good few chances last night but fully justified the faith I put him in with the picks selection with a goal, assist and FPL bonus against Spurs. Some would say he’s had a disappointing season so far, but his points tally bely that: he trails Lampard for the overall top scorer in the FPL by just 2 points. Both players are pure FPL bonus magnets – love ’em or hate ’em , it demonstrates the importance of those extra points.
Van Persie also scored heavily and tops the FPL charts on form. Wenger’s rotation policy up front and the Dutchman’s glass limbs are always a worry with him however.
As Zaki and Defoe fall away slightly, Agbonlahor has crept up the fantasy rankings by hitting his sixth goal of the season last night. Consistency has never been a word we could associate with the Villa man and he continues to score in streaks – before the weekend, he had gone three games without a goal or assist but has followed that with two goals and an assist over his previous two matches. In the short term, with Newcastle and Boro to come next – he should be good for further returns. Thinks stiffen up after that however, with Arsenal and United to follow, so be wary.
Johnson’s brace for Fulham has been a long time coming and could get him some fantasy admirers. Hodgson’s side have a decent run in the short term, which could see continued rewards for the striker. Things get tougher from gameweek 14 however with a run against Liverpool, Villa and City.
Stoke’s Fuller was a threat all night to Sunderland and he has emerged as a very strong budget option, as the likes of Cole and Zamora continue to fall out of favour. Fuller’s goal was his fourth of the season and only tough fixtures in the short term, count against him right now. Stoke take on Arsenal and United over the next four. Although Pulis and fantasy managers may fancy him against the Gunners defence on last night’s showing.
Injuries and Bans
Chelsea’s Carvalho picked up a hamstring injury at the end of the win at Hull. He limped off, leaving Chelsea with 10 men and will now be a doubt for the weekend.
Man City’s Kompany picked up his fifth booking last night. He will get a one match ban but will be eligible for the trip to Bolton this weekend. He’ll miss the home game with Spurs.
Everton’s Fellaini also picked up his fifth booking and again, will be available this weekend but will miss Everton’s game against West Ham, the week after.